Should we care what happens in other countries?

[KurtNilsen]

My other thread on Saudi was pulled. I guess I used a too inflamatory headline in order to attract attention. I appologize for that.

But, I really want to discuss whether we should care about what happens in places like Saudi Arabia, Iran, North Korea, Nigeria, Sudan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan (Two of our allies in the "WOT") etc etc?

There is so much bad stuff going on in the world. Should we try to do anything against it?

I know the Norwegian government is working to try to get the United States to stop with the death penalty.

Should other countries get involved with what is happening in other countries?

And what should be done? Sanctions? War? Verbal condemnations?


Is it our duty to interfer, national sovereignty be darned?

[mmonk]

1. our words

are becoming less and less meaningful in the world. I think our time of useful input in the affairs of the world is shrinking rapidly.

[KurtNilsen]

2. So, do you think that the US should do nothing then? Perhaps you are

right. I guess I was ignorant at the time of Somalia, but I thought the US went in to help because people were starving to death and the whole world demanded action.

But, the US earned nothing, but scorn (and death and destruction) for its involvement.

[pop goes the weasel]

3. actually

other nations did not look down on the US for going into Somalia to try to help in what was obviously a crisis. We injured our national reputation by pulling out, same as we did after the barracks attack in Lebanon. The US tends to react one of two ways to the predictable violence of peace-keeping situations when it turns on us. Either we take our ball and go home, or we go into Rambo mode. Staying calm doesn't seem to occur to the American mind.

(That said, I think we have to get out of Iraq, simply because we are not and were not peace-keepers. We are peace-disruptors. It wasn't a pleasant peace, but it was a peace.)